


Light, Lighter, Lighting Up

by Alitheia



Series: Don't Die, Don't Kill [1]
Category: Joker Game (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Established Relationship, M/M, No Plot/Plotless, kaminaga's a worried boyfriend, modernspy!au, this could've been something cool but my dumb brain won
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-03
Updated: 2018-03-03
Packaged: 2019-03-25 23:03:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13844886
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alitheia/pseuds/Alitheia
Summary: “Remember what Yuuki-san always says,” the voice in his earpiece reminds, for the umpteenth time in the last thirty minutes,“don’t die, don’t kill.”“I know.”But Miyoshi is just so done with this, like everything else in his life.





	Light, Lighter, Lighting Up

**Author's Note:**

>   
>  me: hey a cool modernspy!au for jga seems nice  
>   
> brain: yeah but how about we make it dumb  
> 

“ _Remember what Yuuki-san always says,_ ” the voice in his earpiece reminds, for the umpteenth time in the last thirty minutes, _“don’t die, don’t kill.”_

“I know.”

“ _Knowing is not good enough, you gotta understand._ ”

“I understand.” Because of course he does, better than any other operative agents; who does Kaminaga think he’s talking to? “For god’s sake, Kaminaga, what’s wrong with you today?”

“ _Me?_ ” He neither likes to make baseless assumptions, nor trying to be a smart-ass, but he can’t ignore it once he notices there’s just a little too much of something suspiciously similar to emotion, leaking from Kaminaga’s tone. _“Oh, I’m completely, perfectly, fine. You’re the one we should be worried about, Miyoshi.”_

“No need, I’ll be all right.”

“ _Yeah, and the last time a certain someone said that, he ended up dying in a wrecked train car somewhere in Germany._ ”

“It was _pure_ accident,” Miyoshi replies, coldly. Although he and everybody know the event that almost costs him his life last winter was something unpredictable and unavoidable, Miyoshi still hates hearing it. Nobody blames him, but every time the subject is brought up, it feels as if he had made a fatal mistake and messed up in a mission. It’s unreasonable to feel that way, he’s fully aware, but Miyoshi requires things to be done in no less than a perfectionist standard—like his hair, or his job.

“ _And all I know is that this one, has the probability to end up in an ‘accident’ too,_ ” he discerns that Kaminaga only speaks this fast when irritated, “ _just don’t die, okay._ ”

“How many times are you going to repeat that?”

“ _Until you’re done with that shit and get back here safely, because I swear, Miyoshi, if you don’t show up in the next ten minutes then I’m—_ ”

“Please shut up,” Miyoshi scans his surroundings, “I’m thinking.”

“ _Of what?_ ”

Thinking may be an understatement, as what he really does was to observe and analyze and calculate. His mind works fast, taking conclusion and constructing solutions in a matter of seconds. Kaminaga gets that, everybody in the agency gets that because they’re just the same, but sometimes they’re still quite behind him. Miyoshi is one of the most brightest of them all—and that’s why he’s their leader, _duh—_ but he has trouble articulating his thought process, and can’t really explain how or why he does things. He knows if a plan is shit, or which part of a mission that will blow up—sometimes literally—but still it’s hard for him to make other people understand as fast as he does.

So by the time he finishes assessing escape routes based on the information provided earlier by their computer genius, Jitsui, and Kaminaga asks once more about what he’s thinking he’s going to do, he only says one word, “You.”

“ _Miyoshi!_ ”

Miyoshi likes to think he’s funny, and not to mention smart as hell. Everyone questions his sense of humor, but they just really don’t know how to get a good laugh.

He then runs, light and moderate as to not make a sound. He’s been working hard in physiotherapy and putting more effort in the gym ever since that damn accident, and clearly his hard work pays off. At one point he was buried under the destroyed train car, unable to move, choking on his own blood, trying not to die even more as a metal stick made his chest a new home. The pain and trauma had him dissociating a few times after, but he’d passed all that. Now just look at how his breath is steady, his body is in perfect condition, his mind is focused. Swift as a cat, Miyoshi will complete this mission splendidly, bringing home the gathered information and excellent report to their spymaster—

“Oh, no.”

“‘ _Oh, no’ what? What did you see?_ ”

It’s a turn in the corridor, and Miyoshi pulls himself at the right moment, placing his back against the wall just as a bullet shot and a hole appears on the concrete in front of his eyes. He’s moved too fast to count, but he saw at least three people at the other end, though only one is armed.

A static, a string of swear words that even Kaminaga won’t imagine using, and another voice buzzes in his ear. Jitsui’s.

“ _Fuck, Miyoshi-san_ ”—he fights the urge to roll his eyes, Miyoshi doesn’t know how could someone spit out such unrefined use of language while still addressing people politely, all in _one_ sentence—“the floor map was a fake, that’s a dead end!”

“ _What the hell?_ ” Kaminaga says it for him. He’s always good and quick with words, refined or not, and seems to understand people as well as he understands how to break a safe deposit box. If Miyoshi is the brain, Kaminaga is the voice. He’s a good leader too, but his emotions still get in the way at times, especially when it concerns the well-being of his teammates, so Yuuki puts both of them as partial leaders, because they complement, not a substitute for each other. “ _You’re supposed to make sure that it wasn’t, Jitsui!_ ”

“ _I know, and I apologize, but when I hacked into the system these bastards hid—_ " The rest is beyond him. Miyoshi’s intelligent, but he doesn’t speak binary like Jitsui does. Or gangster. Whichever language it is that Jitsui’s currently using. He fires back, just to distract, but enough to buy him a bit of time, hopefully.

“ _And I’ve warned you not to be tricked by something so trivial!_ ” His voice is indignant, but he knows Kaminaga is actually more frustrated at himself than he’s angry at Jitsui. He’s been like that ever since he comes back from that one mission in summer that the others dub as the Light Bulb Incident™. Miyoshi isn’t sure what exactly had happened, because by that time he’d already been on his own ill-fated mission, but his partner is still very sensitive about it, taking every mention of maps and tricks as a personal offense, and somehow becomes extra protective of the team like he’s exerting some kind of a weird coping mechanism. He’s been wanting to press about it for a while, but every time Miyoshi brings up something that's remotely close to a light bulb, Kaminaga can’t even look him in the eye.

“ _That’s why I said I’m sorry!_ ”

“ _You_ ,” there’s a moment of pause, Miyoshi has a faint premonition of what will come, but he’s too late to stop it, Kaminaga finishes his sentence in the most serious tone he can muster, “ _you had one job_.”

Miyoshi is so done with this, like everything else in his life. Jitsui doesn’t hold back his groan, but by the sound of it he’s laughing as well. A repressed laugh grows and he hears Hatano’s voice chimes in, “ _God, that was so bad_.”

“ _But you guys still love me_.”

“ _Only when you come back from a mission drunk on truth serum_.” Oh, okay, Miyoshi thinks he can guess what that light bulb fiasco is all about now.

“ _Nice_ ,” Jitsui chirps.

His partner is about to retort, but he cuts him off at the first intake of breath, “Gentlemen, as much as I’d love to discuss about Kaminaga’s light bulb issues right now, I’d really appreciate it if I could make it out alive first.” Another round of bullet is shot, but to be honest he’s more annoyed by the sound than feeling anything else.

“ _Right_ ,” Jitsui’s typing on his keyboard is so furious Miyoshi can hear it through the comms, “ _either you go back to where you came in from—but that wastes too much time—or take them down and get to the air ventilation on the second floor. That’s probably the best option, I can lead you to the exit from there._ ”

“Got it.”

“ _No, wait,_ ” Kaminaga says, “ _Jitsui, are you sure this is safe—_ "

“ _Or I can always come in,_ ” Hatano offers.

“ _That won’t be necessary, stay at your post, Hatano-san_. _The other teams need you there in two minutes._ ”

“ _Understood_.”

Kaminaga hasn’t given up. “ _Wait, wait, what if it doesn’t work?”_

“ _Miyoshi-san can handle this_.”

“ _I know, but what if, sorry, not that I doubt you or anything, Miyoshi_.” Kaminaga’s speaks like a bullet train; he’s just worried, Miyoshi understands, and that’s actually kind of… sweet. “ _It’s just, maybe you should just go back to the main hall and Jitsui leads you from there instead? I’m just not sure about this route—especially since I can’t see it—what if it’s another trick?_ ”

He hears footsteps coming closer. Miyoshi swallows, bracing himself to attack; he’s going to regret this, but he says it anyway, “Guess I’ll die.”

“ _Ohh, good one!_ ” Hatano bursts out laughing and even Jitsui chuckles openly. Kaminaga makes a strangled sound to hide his laugh. Everything is way funnier when the tension is high, and Miyoshi’s tempted to add more, but he figures everybody already has enough for one day; there’s only so much of this type of jokes he can take before he can hear his brain cells dying. This is what happens when one person sends too many memes and uses too many reaction pics in the group chat (that’s for Odagiri to be guilty of, but he’s currently busy in B Team).

Kaminaga practically screams at each loud bang he hears—“ _What was that sound? You all right? Don’t kill anyone, okay, oh wait, on second thought, I don’t care, just kill them all if it’s necessary, don’t die, don’t get caught!_ —so Miyoshi takes off his earpiece after he gets briefed with the new route. He’s the one who almost died, but it seems that the shock shakes up Kaminaga more than it does to himself. It shouldn’t be that surprising, considering their line of work, but his partner hasn’t taken eyes off him ever since he’s officially released from the hospital, and that was months ago. Miyoshi is somewhat happy he’s being cared for, but he doesn’t need Kaminaga to baby him like Tazaki does to his pigeons.

The spy successfully gets out and distances himself from the building, then sees the car Kaminaga is in, waiting for him. It’s must be driving him crazy having to be the standby, but he’s surprisingly adherent to their original plan and roles for this mission, even going as far as letting Amari play his part alone as the C Team. (Miyoshi genuinely worries for him, actually; the last time Amari went on a solo mission, he brought home a kid and a dog and demanded that he’d be allowed to adopt them both. New family members are nice, but then Miyoshi is the one who gets to hear Fukumoto complains about their monthly budget, after all.)

When Miyoshi turns on his communication device again, he’s just in time to hear Kaminaga still talking to Jitsui, “ _Is he dead yet_?”

“ _No, he’s alive and well, and moving right towards you_.”

“ _Thank god_.”

“ _I thought you were unreligious_.”

“ _I might as well be an atheist and still pray to every god just to have him safe, Jitsui_.” Kaminaga sounds tired.

There’s radio silence for a few seconds, as if Jitsui is contemplating about what he’s going to say. He usually doesn’t. “ _Don’t let it get to you too much, Kaminaga-san, he’s more than capable of taking care of himself.”_

“ _I know he does, but still can’t help it_ ,” he chuckles, “ _I’ll age so much faster if this keeps up._ ”

Jitsui hums in agreement. “ _We were just talking about your thinning hair the other day at the bar, actually._ ”

 _“Hey,_ ” Kaminaga warns, but there’s no real threat in it, “ _not everybody can stay ageless like you or Hatano, okay—what do you guys even consume, children’s blood?_ ”

“ _Not quite, but you might want to try that anti-aging cream Miyoshi-san puts on every night when you’re not looking._ ” Jitsui, that little traitor.

“ _He what?”_ Kaminaga laughs, sounds a bit bewildered, but with genuine fondness.

“ _Ask some from him,_ ” Jitsui suggests, playful, “ _you two will still age, but at least you’ll do it like fine wine._ ”

He doesn’t even sound too embarrassed when he replies, _“Well, I do want to, grow old with him, I mean_.”

Holding himself from bringing his palm to his face, Miyoshi taps the window on the passenger door. Why do people even talk about these things over the open comms, anyway, for heaven’s sake. His cheeks are somehow burning hot—must be from all the running and flipping earlier, must be _that_. “Excuse me, sir, do you have a lighter?”

The window goes down and he sees his partner smiling at him. “No, but my heart lights up for you.”

“Just open the damn door.” Miyoshi can’t help but to smile himself.

**Author's Note:**

> miyoshi: shouldn't the answer for earlier be "my shoes are black"?
> 
> kaminaga: i can't miss my chance to be smooth
> 
> miyoshi: that's breaking protocol
> 
> kaminaga: as long as it's not breaking your heart
> 
> —okay i'll stop now lmao can’t believe this draft has been sitting for over a year on my laptop why didn’t i finish it earlier what’ve i been doing www but anyway, thank you for reading!


End file.
